Whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother

And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind. And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house.  Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

- Mark 3:19b-35

Yesterday we read that, after the Pharisees and Herodians began to plot together against Him (see Saturday's reading),  Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea.  And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan; and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him.  So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him.  For He healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to touch Him.  And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God."  But He sternly warned them that they should not make Him known.  And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted.  And they came to Him.  Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:  Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is "Sons of Thunder"; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.  

And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house."  We see that Jesus' ministry has become so popular that the people crowd into the house because He is there, so much so that no one can even eat a meal.  But in response to what is happening His relatives question His sanity; this is unseemly for the person they know as the private Jesus, the son of Mary, before He began this public ministry.  And He's drawing extraordinary attention to Himself, not all of it favorable, particularly from the authorities.  The religious authorities are already planning action against Him.  In this spirit, the scribes have come down from Jerusalem (no doubt sent by the Pharisees), accusing Him of casting out demons by the ruler of demons, ascribing the signs of His ministry to demonic power, a kind of sorcery.  Beelzebub, or Baal, was the prince of "the dung heap" or lord of "the flies" -- the name being a Jewish slur or ridicule of  a god worshiped by the Philistines (2 Kings 1:2-16).  Here they call him ruler of the demons.  My study bible says that the impossibility of demons fighting against themselves illustrates the irrational pride and envy of the Pharisees in their opposition to Jesus.  Jesus uses His perfect logic to demolish the charge made against His work and ministry.  It is noteworthy to us to understand that He puts it in the language of warfare, an image of spiritual battle.

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."  Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit means blasphemy against the activity of the Spirit; that is, blasphemy against pure goodness.  The divine activity of the Spirit is already known from the Old Testament; although Jesus as Messiah is something new to them, to name the action of the Holy Spirit evil comes from a willful hardness of heart and a refusal to accept God's mercy.  Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit according to the Fathers of the Church, is not an "unforgivable sin" and Jesus does not call the sin "unforgivable."  Rather, St. John Chrysostom teaches that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit would be forgivable if a person were to repent of it.  My study bible says that Jesus makes this declaration knowing that those who blaspheme the Spirit are calling pure, divine goodness "evil," and are beyond repentance by their own choice.

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."  My study bible says that Christ's relatives have not yet understood His identity and mission.  (These brothers are either extended family such as cousins -- it remains common today in the Middle East to call cousins "brothers" -- or sons of Joseph from an earlier marriage.)  But Jesus points to a spiritual family, one based on obedience to the will of God.

Today's reading illustrates strong notions of alliance.  What, really, is the basis for our understanding of nation or clan or family?  How does it draw upon a spiritual understanding of life?  Presumably, the religious authorities in Jerusalem represent the Jewish people.  They are the authorities who regulate and enforce the spiritual life of the people, that religious life given to the "people of God" via revelation through Moses and the Prophets, and all the traditions built up around the Law and the worship in the temple.  But here, they accuse Christ of casting out demons by the ruler of demons.  In other words, they are ascribing all the powerful healing and spiritual work revealed through Christ's ministry to the power of demons.  One should understand that exorcism was also practiced in Judaism; this is not something unknown.  But people are amazed at Jesus, and gather to Him for healing and casting out such "unclean spirits."  Jesus, we note, gives us an image of battle:  that it takes one stronger than the "strong man" (Satan) to cast him out.  This is an image of kingdom against kingdom, or rather the force of one ruler against another, and Christ's is the stronger.  He then gives the image of the Holy Spirit, the force of the powerful work present in His ministry.  Jesus gives us a kind of cosmology here in the images both of battling kingdoms and also the work of the Spirit.  We're not given a kind of list of sins in social or community conduct, but rather an understanding that the real power of life, the pure goodness of God, is the center around which we live our lives.  The great sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.  This is not about a particular work or a particular act, but rather about the power of God that is in our midst where the Holy Spirit is present.  It is the Spirit that worked through the prophets and gave their word power and truth.  All the eloquent speech in the world would not have the same effect, unless it were also part of the work of the Spirit.  When we speak of sinning, it's important to understand this concept of beauty and truth and goodness.  "Sin" isn't simply about someone crossing us or hurting us, it also must be understood in light of the presence of the Kingdom and our orientation toward it.  At the same time, these images we're given by Christ teach us about what we are to seek in life, what we are to seek to serve and be a part of.  He clearly names His "brother and sister and mother" as those who seek to do the will of God.  This is again a reference to the power of the Kingdom in our midst, and our commitment to participation in it.  We note in Jesus' illustration of the battle of kingdoms, of the strong man and the "stronger man," that there is no crossing back and forth, no soldier with one foot in both camps.  To do so is to be at war within or with oneself, a recipe for failure.  We're meant to choose sides in this struggle.  We're meant to have a clear understanding of where we stand spiritually, where our true allegiances are that focus our lives in the most profound relationship we will have.  Indeed, Jesus places it so deeply in the center of our reality that it creates in us relationship to Him as  "brother and sister and mother."  He doesn't negate the worldly relationships of family here, but He establishes a new sense of relationship in terms of spiritual kinship and loyalty to the will of the Father.  This permeates all of our lives.  It speaks to our choice and our freedom.